


It Takes a Village to Raise Chell...

by QueenofAngstandSin



Category: Portal (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Androids, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Android AU, Android Adventure Core, Android Anger Core, Android Cores, Android Curiosity Core, Android Fact Core, Android GLaDOS, Android Intelligence Core, Android Morality Core, Android Space Core, Android Wheatley, Androids, Attempted Murder, But she was fixed don't worry, Caroline is Chell's Mom, Child Chell AU, Evil GLaDOS, Fluff and Angst, Gen, He'll never tell, I swear she gets better., Kinda, Maybe - Freeform, Morality is the only sane core, Morality refuses to let GLaDOS kill a child, Morality was broken when GLaDOS murdered everyone, Mute Chell (Portal), No romance with Chell, Occurs right after GLaDOS kills everyone, Portal Stories: Mel, Romance with the Cores, She doesn't talk because of trauma, She gets better i promise, That's super serious she actually tortures Wheatley., The corrupt cores are now babysitters, Torture, Virgil is gay and might have a crush on Wheatley, at first, attempted child murder
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-21
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:35:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26229550
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenofAngstandSin/pseuds/QueenofAngstandSin
Summary: ...or at least eight personality cores.GLaDOS immediately notices Anger, Intelligence and Curiosity acting weird, and with Morality refusing to talk to her she can't figure out what's going on.Until she hears crying, and notices human food going missing.GLaDOS is thrilled to have a new test subject, since she can't find the others, but her cores are refusing to let her touch it!Oh well, she knows how she can do what she want. She just needs to hold this little pest over their heads.Except....it backfires spectacularly.Alternate title: All the cores immediately claim the human child and there's nothing GLaDOS can do about it!
Relationships: Chell & GLaDOS, Chell & Mel (Portal), Chell & Virgil (Portal), Chell & Wheatley (Portal), Chell & everyone, Chell & the Anger/Emotion Core, Chell & the Curiosity Core, Chell & the Intelligence Core, Chell & the Morality Core, Mel & Virgil (Portal)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 45





	1. Loss of Control

Soft sobbing rang in the silence of the facility, jolting GLaDOS out of sleep mode. _That noise!_ She swore she was going crazy. Giggles, traces of humans she couldn't find, disappearing human food.

 _"Corrupt cores!"_ GLaDOS snarled, turning on a camera so she could see the four cores. _"Have you been patrolling like I told you?"_

"SPAAAACEEEE-"

 _"Shut UP you abomination!"_ She snarled. _"If I hear one more word about space I will toss you in the incinerator!"_

"Maybe calm down a little?" The intelligence dampening core, who called himself Wheatley, suggested. "It's just one human, right?"

_"All the more reason for it to be **mine**! The purpose of this facility is to test. I need a test subject to do so! If you don't bring me that human, I'll destroy all four of you!"_

"I don't think that's necessary." Intelligence spoke up. "You did just slaughter a whole group of humans, both children and their parents. You may be replaying the sound of the children you killed."

GLaDOS shuddered. That felt _wrong_. She was a monster but she wouldn't replay the sound of sobbing children, especially since this was driving her _insane_. She shook her head, then noticed Fact lean over to Rick and mutter something.

_**"GET BACK TO WORK."** _

________________________________

It was twelve hours before GLaDOS got a lead.

She completely lost faith in those idiots within an hour, especially when she caught Curiosity trying to send a message to Fact. And so she detached from the Chassis, dismissing her cores and started wandering around herself

GLaDOS peered around a corner, seeing Intelligence, and one of the defective cores. Intelligence held some food, 

"You're sure she's not around here, Wheatley?"

"Fact said she's miles away."

"Take what he says with a kilo of salt." Intelligence frowned. "Anger said she was only a couple corridors down."

"Then we need to be fast. You know what humans eat, right?"

 _Traitors!_ GLaDOS held back from killing them on the spot. They'd lead her straight to her new test subject.

"Of course, and it's not easy to get any of it anymore. She's been watching the kitchens like a hawk. I take it the others are there already?"

"Morality, Curiosity, Space and Rick are. Anger and Fact are going to provide a distraction."

_Moron! Spilling all this information so eagerly? **I SEE EVERYTHING. I HEAR EVERYTHING. HOW DARE THEY?**_

She was going to destroy them- no, not destroy yet. She'd _torture_ them, she'd make them scream, starting with the one who found the human. But first they'd lead her straight to it.

She followed the cores to one of her test chambers. Wheatley shifted the walls until finding a lose one, sliding it open. They were smarter than she thought, she'd admit. The cameras in here were broken, the turrets sung instead of shooting the treasonous bastards.

"Close it!" GLaDOS recognized Curiosity's voice. The wall closed as the two androids slipped inside, and GLaDOS pressed against the wall to hear.

"Has she said anything?" Wheatley asked. "C'mon, luv, say something. Apple. Can you say...no, no that's...uh...that's hopping."

"Shush, Wheatley! Let her draw!" Curiosity said cheerfully.

"Is that what that is?"

"Not right now, time to eat." Intelligence interrupted.

She'd heard enough.

Long, metal arms descended from the ceiling, forcing the wall open and snatching up the cores as GLaDOS strolled inside. Sitting in the middle of the "room" was a human child, who stared up at her with terrified eyes. Paper sat scattered in front of her, messy doodles labeled with short, easy names for her cores with crude, barely recognizable drawings. GLaDOS thought it was a little funny she called Intelligence "Cake" by the look of the color he was "Drawn" in.

"Oh no-! No, nO, NO, _NO_!" The Intelligence Dampening Core struggled. GLaDOS looked around, feeling a sense of glee as she watched her cores struggle. Adventure, or "Rick" as he called himself, struggled, cussing at her, Curiosity and Wheatley begged her not to hurt the child, Intelligence tried to appeal to logic, Space twitched nervously, face becoming panicked. Only Morality said nothing, staring at her. GLaDOS picked up an apple, tossing it into the air and catching it as she loomed over the human.

 _"I should kill all of you. Traitors. But you did lead me straight to the human."_ GLaDOS scanned the human.

**TEST SUBJECT NO. 1: CHELL [REDACTED]**

**D.O.B: [REDACTED]**

**GENDER: FEMALE**

**AGE: 7 YEARS**

_"I decided I'll only kill the one who found her and **did not tell me**."_ She hissed. _"Now, spit it out. That way I don't need to torture all of you right away. It'll be sooooo much less painful if you tell me. Curiosity, dear? I know you'd never lie, I bet you were just curious about this tiny, fleshy thing."_

Curiosity pursed her lips.

_"Morality? You'd never lie, would you? That's not very moral."_

Nothing.

_"Intelligence? You're smart, my only intellectual equal. Will you tell me?"_

He shook his head.

_"Space? Adventure? I bet you assumed this'd just be fun, right? Wheatley? You're not a bad core, I bet. Just a little soft, huh? A follower? Tell me the truth."_

The corrupt cores stayed silent.

_"Fine. I'll do this one at a time."_

The arm holding Curiosity tightened slowly, harder and harder until the metal she was made up began to crack and she was screaming in agony. Space began to scream her name, and GLaDOS held back a grin as she saw Wheatley squirming.

"Wheatley, no-" Curiosity gasped.

"Don't-!" GLaDOS tightened an mechanical arm around Rick's neck.

"Think about this-" Intelligence was cut off by a mechanical arm covering his mouth.

Wheatley trembled, closing his eyes. GLaDOS glanced at Morality, no doubt the leader. _You found her, didn't you? You are why I'm going to kill them-_

"I FOUND HER!"

 _...what?_ GLaDOS turned to Wheatley, who was slack in her grip. _"...say again?"_

"I found her, it was me. I didn't know what to do so I didn't say anything. I brought the others into this, don't punish them, _I_ did this." He rambled. "Just- just stop, please, stop, don't- don't hurt them, pleasepleaseplease-"

 _"Even after I ordered you to bring her back?"_ GLaDOS purred with a false sweetness. _"You favor self-preservation over all else. Why not bring her to me? You wouldn't be questioned or punished."_

"I-I was scared. For her. She- she's so tiny, she's so weak, she'd die." He glanced at Chell, who looked ready to cry. She mouthed his name, nothing but a pathetic little whimper coming out. "She was crying when I found her, she was all alone, and-and I..."

_"I've heard enough. You are soft, but also a moron. Take this as a lesson, all of you. You act like an idiot? You die as an idiot."_

She pinned the protesting cores to the floor and walls as she pulled Wheatley closer to her, his head bowed. _"Was it worth it, Wheatley? The pain you're going to die feeling? I'll kill you, then bring you back again and again and kill you over and over again."_

He closed his eyes.

GLaDOS shifted two new arms appearing, one gripping him by his sides and the other gripping his skull. She began squeezing his torso first, she could almost _feel_ everything in him pumping overtime to keep him functional. Metal and synthetic flesh began to break, Wheatley began to scream. She ignored the other cores and whatever they had to say, grinning as dark, dark oil pulsed out of the "wounds" with each twitch of his body once she let up, the core gasping for air he didn't need.

 _"Such a weak body,"_ GLaDOS wiped oil away from his chin with a sweet, but impossibly cruel, smile, _"...don't worry, I'll make you stronger next time. I can punish you longer. Well. Time to crush your skull."_

Wheatley started screaming again as she squeezed his head, cracks spreading across his face and optics. His optics flickered. Just a little more..

Suddenly a tiny fist pounded her leg. GLaDOS stopped, looking down. Chell was looking up at her desperately, one hand clutching her dress and the other balled into a fist. Experimentally she loosened the pressure on Wheatley's skull, reapplying it to his torso.

He screamed, Chell shook her head, tugging her dress and hitting her harder, tears staining her cheeks.

 _"How rude."_ GLaDOS tossed Wheatley aside, ignoring that he wasn't dead. She could do that later. _"You know, I really wanted a test subject, but raising you? That's too much work, I'll just kill you instead, or maybe put you into an AI and clone that AI so I have lots of subjects."_ Yes, that sounded fine. She'd crush their spirits that way. They'd _never_ step out of line again.

"No..." Wheatley gasped out. "No, Chell, please...please, run, just-"

GLaDOS lifted the child by her throat, squeezing almost gently. Her pulse was frantic under her hand and her tendon bulged. _"It's okay, Wheatley. I don't have to kill you. Knowing you failed will do just fine-"_

" _Stop_."

GLaDOS slowly turned to Morality. She hadn't spoken since she was reattached. _"Excuse me?"_

"Deliberately killing a test subject is reason to believe corruption has taken place." She raised her head, glaring at her. "As central core, you are to keep _all_ test subjects healthy and alive unless they meet their end _naturally_ in a test deemed to be fair or by natural means, such as organ failure from illness or old age. Fair meaning it has the needed parts to complete the test, is normally survivable with the help of provided tools. It is not deliberately deadly or _meant_ to kill. If you kill Chell right here, right now, it provides reason for a core transfer the second you return to your chamber and I will _personally_ see to it that you are _replaced and destroyed_."

GLaDOS fell silent, staring Mortality down.

"As will I." Rick spoke up. "You won't be killin' any kids on my watch!"

"It's completely illogical to let a personality core so willing to toss away a subject's life remain as central core." Intelligence agreed.

"It's eight of us and one of you!" Curiosity choked out.

"Space! Send you to space!" Space _somewhat_ threatened.

"You're not..." Wheatley pushed himself up on his hands and knees. "...You're not in control anymore, GLaDOS. It's over."

GLaDOS snarled, dropping Chell back to the ground. _"No. I am in control, moron. But I'll bite. Intelligence, start making a routine for Test Subject No. 1. Wheatley, Rick, Space. You and Fact have a new job: Raise the subject to an acceptable point for testing to begin."_

She released the cores, Chell ran over to Wheatley, wrapping he arms around his neck and began to sob into his shoulder. 

_" **Do not fail me**. I can always change my mind about killing you. ALL of you."_


	2. An (Extra)ordinary Girl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chell reflects a little, and then stands up to GLaDOS

Chell didn't understand a lot of what was going on.

She had been proudly displaying her project, a great big potato battery that was abnormal in a few ways. Like the absurd size of it, the fact it wasn't supposed to be sprouting but it was and the fact that Chell was such an ordinary little girl that it was questionable how anything she did could be abnormal. In fact, the only abnormal thing was her refusal to speak.

The next moment, the adults were screaming. Suddenly, a man grabbed her hand, pulling her out of the room and into the wall. Chell had heard screaming and begging and she'd begun to cry. The man had quickly tried to calm her, granted it only scared her more but it quieted her for the most part.

_"There's a very bad lady, and she wants to hurt you. If you're quiet and hide where I tell you then she can't find you so she can't hurt you, okay?"_

Chell has sniffled, nodding, and the scruffy man had taken her to a room where the cameras were all off and the only thing there were tall white robots who sang in pretty voices. He had hid her in the wall and left her all alone. He'd bring her food back, and sometimes she'd hear who she could only assume was the bad lady talking over intercoms to him.

Then one day he stopped coming.

Chell was left alone and didn't know what to do. She didn't know where to find food, she didn't know where she was in the building, and she was so very scared of the bad lady finding her. Some days she cried and wailed for the scruffy man to come back, some days she sat in silence, listening to the white robots sing, some days she let their gentle, sweet voices lull her to sleep.

Then someone came.

Chell was scared at first. She had begun to cry when he reached for her, but he had quickly hushed her, and pulled her into a hug. He wasn't warm like her daddy had been, but he was comforting to her.

He asked her name, but she was too scared to talk and her throat hurt from days upon days of crying. He told her it was okay if she wasn't ready to talk yet and called himself Wheatley.

Wheatley was a funny man, and Chell liked him. He was tall, with messy light brown hair, a pointed nose, freckles and brilliant blue eyes. He wore a fancy white shirt with a light gray vest and darker gray pants that were kinda puffy. He didn't wear his tie right, either, but it made him even more unique.

Then she met the others.

She met Curiosity next. Curiosity was a petite woman with curly dark ginger hair. She had orange eyes, which Chell found a little odd, but she otherwise liked her kind look. Curiosity wore a nice, light orange blouse and a darker, short skirt. She also wore an odd bow around her neck that Chell also liked.

Then there was Rick. Tall, but not as tall as Wheatley, but muscular and bulky. He had dark, smooth hair and a slightly scruffy chin, and dark green eyes. Chell thought his clothes looked like something a cartoon character wore on a safari. A wide brimmed hat, tall boots, long pants and sleeves that were rolled up to his elbows, all tan except the boots which were black.

Space had arrived with Rick, and he wore a white dress shirt and black pants. It was pretty boring for someone so energetic, but he did have a shiny NASA pin. His hair was curly, almost bouncy in a way Curiosity's wasn't, and a nice honey blonde, and his eyes were bright yellow.

Anger was after him, and he scared her. He had dark red hair that went in every different direction and bloody red eyes. He was dressed similarly to Wheatley, but his own shirt was red and his vest was black. Overall he also just looked...sharper than Wheatley as well. Anger had yelled at them when he found out about her, talking about someone named GLaDOS and how she was going to kill them.

Chell didn't understand much of what he said, but thanks to the bad lady, who she assumed must be GLaDOS, she understood the word "kill" and understood the idea of death.

_"We have to turn her over." He had said. "If she finds out we hid her, she'll kill all of us!"_

_Chell had begun to cry hearing that. She didn't want her friends to die and she didn't want to be all alone again! Curiosity had scooped her up, shushing her and Wheatley had argued._

_"Passion we can't. We can't hand her over, she's too young, the tests will kill her."_

_"Why would GLaDOS test her over that employee who escaped with her?"_

_"Someone put her first on the testing list." Curiosity had told him with a frown. "I got curious and checked, I guess that's why she basically forgot the other guy's existence. Passion, please, you don't have to be part of this. If we get caught we'll act like you don't know. Just please don't tell GLaDOS."_

_He had frowned, then sighed._

_"You know what? I'll ask Intelligence to help. He's the only one who cooks so he can sneak food for her. I just...hope you all know what you're doing."_

Then she met Fact and Intelligence.

Fact, or Craig as he liked to be called, had dark brown hair that was brushed to the side and pink eyes. He wore a light gray suit and a darker pink tie. Chell wasn't entirely sure everything he said matched his name, since the others usually told her to dismiss anything "fact related" he said. Intelligence looked a lot like him, black hair brushed to the opposite side and a darker gray suit with a black tie. He, however, wore a pink apron any time he cooked and he often smelled like cake, hence her nickname for him being "Cake".

Finally, she met Morality.

She didn't understand why they were all so scared of her. At first she thought this was the bad lady, but she'd already figured out that the bad lady's name was "GLaDOS", not Morality. Morality was pretty quiet and looked smart, like Intelligence. She wore a simple gray dressy jacket and a dark purple knee-length skirt. Glasses sat upon her face, and her purple eyes didn't betray much emotion. She had raised an eyebrow and approached Chell, kneeling down as the others freaked out. "Freaked out" meaning begging her not to say anything.

She didn't think Anger or Rick could even beg. It was so odd for them, but Morality had explained why when Chell tilted her head curiously.

 _"They think I'm going to tell GLaDOS."_ _She told her, blinking slowly. "But I'm not."_

_"What?" Wheatley stared at her in shock. "But-that means you're lying to her. That's not very moral."_

_"Wheatley, shut up!" Anger snapped._

_"You're right, Wheatley. Lying to GLaDOS is immoral, especially when testing is in her programming and the singular intent for this place. However, handing Chell over when it means being put into rigorous training or just being thrown right into testing is immoral as well, since there's a high likelihood she wouldn't survive. It's also immoral because it's betraying my friends and that's not moral, either." She explained. "In this case, where both choices can be considered immoral, the scientist's intentions for me demands I reflect on what the scientists would do: ensure GLaDOS can carry out testing. But my own moral and my intention ensures GLaDOS cannot take another life."_

And that was that.

Then, finally, Chell met Her.

The bad lady.

One minute Chell was doodling, excited to see Wheatley and Intelligence bringing her breakfast. The next suddenly her friends, her found family, were being restrained and a tall woman walked in.

This woman didn't have skin like her friends(Of course Chell knew her friends weren't human, they flat out said so, and no human had such exaggerated features), but instead was made of a light metal, with lines where parts connected. Her entire eye was yellow, except a big pupil in the middle, and her hair was cut short and a snowy white. She was taller than even Wheatley, and towered over her. She wore an elegant white dress with a nearly see-through cape.

Chell was instantly afraid of her.

She was even more afraid when Curiosity started screaming in pain.

Chell had felt helpless watching Wheatley spill that he found her, that it was all his idea.

And then, he was screaming too. He was in pain and this lady-GLaDOS, was enjoying it.

So she did the first thing she thought of. She ran up to GLaDOS despite protests and grabbed her dress, tugging with a whine. And it worked, GLaDOS had stopped, staring down at her before doing whatever she was doing to hurt him again.

Chell shook her head and punched her this time.

Then GLaDOS tossed Wheatley aside. The cores had all told her to run, begged her to get out of there, but she was completely frozen realizing she probably just angered the person who killed everyone she knew and cared for.

Then she had her by the throat.

It had only happened a half hour ago, but Chell completely forgot what happened next. She vaguely remembered being dropped after Morality spoke up and running to Wheatley's side, but she had almost completely shut down from terror. 

Now she was being held by Anger, who bounced her gently while staring GLaDOS down. A different core was working on repairing Wheatley and Curiosity, he had darker skin, golden eyes and a flowery vest over a boring brown shirt.

"Well, GLaDOS." The android turned to her, "You did quite a number on him. It'll be hard to repair the internal damage."

_"Can you do it?"_

"Yeah," he frowned, "But we don't have many parts for his model up here, especially after you tore him off you like that. Though granted the scientists shouldn't have put him back on you, you did a lot of damage.. Someone's gonna have to go down to find more parts sooner or later, but I'll do what I can."

She nodded. _"How long can I put it off?"_

Wheatley suddenly seized up, twitching as a shower of sparks left one of the cracks. The new core frowned. "Not long, I'm afraid. Luckily I was planning to head down there anyway."

 _"Why?"_ GLaDOS narrowed her eyes.

"...for parts?" Seeing the dirty look he was getting, and the claws coming from the ceiling behind her, he shrank in on himself. "Okay, I'll bite. I found a cryogenic storage area down there. I'm trying to figure out if any of the humans in storage survived. No luck yet."

And suddenly, he had his head slammed into the wall. Chell stiffened as the android fell to his knees with a quiet gasp.

_"That's for not telling me."_

Chell gritted her teeth. Usually her throat would be tightly shut and her voice would escape her. But not now, she needed to pound something into GLaDOS's thick skull. She refused to tolerate someone in charge being such a bully.

"You should stop being mean, or I'll make you."

Everyone froze, staring at her. Even GLaDOS was taken by shock.

_"Excuse me?"_

Chell just glared at GLaDOS again, before the new core suddenly started laughing.

"Oh that's a riot! Brave kid, huh?"

 _"Virgil."_ GLaDOS snarled. _"Shut up."_

"I can't help it! Boy, not even the scientists were this brave! I like this kid!" Virgil's laughing died down to chuckling. "That's awesome."

_" **Virgil.** "_

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I'll take you and Wheatley down to get those parts and check the cryogenic storage tomorrow. Wheatley and Curi need to rest first and I want to keep an eye on them."

 _"Alright, Passion, take Chell to her room."_ GLaDOS sighed. _"I'm going back to my chamber."_

Chell shook her head.

_"No?"_

"I think she wants to stay with Wheatley." Intelligence spoke up. "Is that right?"

Chell nodded.

 _"Fine."_ GLaDOS turned away. _"I don't really care. Virgil?"_

"Fine by me." He said cheerfully. "Rick, can you get some pillows and blankets for Chell? I'll let her sleep on one of my tables."

Chell opened her eyes.

Her cheeks were wet with tears. Bad dreams weren't uncommon for her, but her fear of being caught by GLaDOS usually kept her from screaming.

She wasn't sure what time it was, but Virgil was awake, typing on a computer, muttering to himself. She watched him a moment, before shifting to fluff her pillows. He seemed to notice this movement, but he turned. "Oh, sorry, Chell, did I wake you?"

She shook her head, drying her cheeks. "Bad dream." She whispered.

"Oh." He frowned, getting up. "You wanna sit and watch me a while?"

She nodded, and Virgil wrapped her in a blanket before picking her up. He sat back down, typing again with her on his lap. Chell didn't really understand anything on the computer, but she felt safer.

She tapped him gently. "Are..." Her throat tightened as he glanced down at her, but she forced the words out. "...you gonna...fix 'em?"

"Yeah, that is my job, kiddo." He smiled. "I just need some parts for Wheatley. He's not like Morality and the crew."

She tilted her head.

"Rick, Space, Craig and Wheatley are old models." He explained. "They were made to distract GLaDOS but it didn't work so they were replaced."

"Oh."

"Don't look so sad. Handling _her_ is not a job to be envied." Virgil looked back to the screen. "It takes all of Morality, Intelligence, Curiosity and Anger's energy to keep her under control on a bad day. Morality was offline when... _that_ happened." He didn't need to explain, she just laid her head against his chest. "It's why she..." He trailed off with a sigh. "I'm sorry, that should have never happened to you."

"Not your fault." She said softly.

They spent the rest of the night in silence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OH BOY  
> So I watched a playthrough of Portal Stories: Mel. I'll be adding a child!Mel, too, for that reason.  
> I know Mel was an adult, but fuck it, here she's the daughter of a Olympian and was taken by Aperature after testing killed her parent and she was orphaned.  
> Virgil will definitely come in more, I love his snarky personality.


	3. Virgil's Olympian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Virgil, GLaDOS and Wheatley head down to Old Aperature. They pick up another kid along the way.  
> GLaDOS is not happy about that.

_"Virgil."_

"Maybe we shouldn't disturb him, this is cute."

_"Virgil, wake up."_

With a snort the maintenance core jolted out of sleep mode, blinking a few times. "Huh?"

GLaDOS and Wheatley were staring at him, and Virgil quickly realized Chell was still on him, but sleeping. "Oh, uh. Hi?"

 _"Explain."_ GLaDOS glared at him.

"She had a nightmare!" Virgil protested as Wheatley picked her up and put her back where she was originally sleeping. 

_"You'll make her soft."_

Virgil remembered how Chell had threatened GLaDOS the night before and shook his head. "I doubt that."

"Let's just-" Wheatley sparked with a wince. "Go already. I can't stand this glitching."

Virgil nodded, grabbing an empty bag and leading them out of his room, closing the door behind him. "Quick trip then. We'll go down, I'll fix ya up and we'll check the cryogenic storage."

"Why the bag?" Wheatley tilted his head.

"You think I'm coming back up without extra parts?" Virgil scoffed. "Fixing things is...kinda my job, remember?"

"Right, right."

Virgil led the way to the lift, typing in something as GLaDOS and Wheatley stepped in. "Down we go."

Virgil hated being down here.

It was dark and dreary and made every circuit in his body want to grow legs and run away.

He smiled, though, as he stepped out of the lift. Maybe today he'd be lucky and he'd find someone alive.

"Do you really think anyone's alive?"

"I hope so." Virgil looked at Wheatley. "There's a backup generator that the cryogenic unit should be patched into. Although...from records it's meant to discontinue life support after a certain period for anyone considered not useful for testing."

Wheatley paused. "...what?"

 _"In layman's terms,"_ GLaDOS spoke up. _"Orphans, hobos, and the sick or elderly will be left to die. Children have a fighting chance, though, if they're the children of war heroes, Olympians or astronauts. They're more valuable than anyone else."_

"But I'm pretty sure their parents would have demanded them back."

GLaDOS shrugged. _"Go get the parts and fix this idiot then meet me back here. Don't keep me waiting."_

"I hate the way she acts."

"I know."

"I hate how she just dismisses people's lives."

"I know."

"I hate how she was just going to kill Chell."

"I know, Wheatley."

"...I hate _her_."

Virgil sighed, picking up a soldering iron. "...I know."

This wasn't a common conversation cores had, but down here it was safe. Up in the Enrichment Center, GLaDOS heard everything. Unless cameras were destroyed she _saw_ everything. But down here? GLaDOS had no power here.

"I thought she was going to kill you yesterday." He said in a weak voice. "You went behind her back, and you saw what she did to me for doing that."

Virgil shrugged, carefully repairing some damaged wires. "Not the first time, Wheat, and it won't be the last. You know I'm the only one who can work on you guys. The nanobots are a tad bit too stupid for that. She really cannot afford to kill me."

"She can reset you." He said quietly.

Virgil fell silent, just continuing to work on his friend.

"Do you really think there's someone left alive?" Wheatley asked once Virgil finished his work, storing some extra parts and supplies in his bag.

"I sure hope so. Especially since humans are social, Chell really should have other humans to socialize with, especially with how young she is." Virgil slung the bag back over his shoulder. "Let's go."

  
Virgil wasn't sure what he expected.

To find someone alive would be nothing short of a miracle with how long they had been left abandoned down here. Nothing regulating their life support or waking them up to prevent permanent brain damage.

The maintenance core sighed as he found yet another deceased test subject. "I don't think anyone's left. Generator must have died."

 _"There's still more to check."_ GLaDOS hissed. _"Virgil, I **swear** if you dragged me down here for nothing-"_

"GLaDOS, I can't do anything about it!" He protested. "This place has been abandoned for years. You think I'm happy about the fact everyone's-"

"I FOUND ONE!"

Both android whipped around to see Wheatley waving, and Virgil found himself running over and peering into the bed.

It was a kid.

She couldn't be older than seven, and had curly ginger hair and a lightly freckled face. She was in a child's version of the old jumpsuit, which was an ugly dull green color. Virgil checked her vitals with a frown.

Wheatley was _right_ , not only was this kid alive, but she was _stable_.

**NAME: MEL [ERR]**

**D.O.B: [ERR]**

**GENDER: FEMALE**

**AGE: 7 YEARS**

"Looks like some of her information was corrupted, but she's alive and stable. Good find, Wheatley."

A couple button presses later, Virgil was pulling Mel out of the bed. She was still sleeping, but he couldn't imagine it'd stay that way long.

 _"Not so much of a good find."_ GLaDOS muttered. _"Just another runt to raise."_

Virgil bit his tongue, feeling the kid stir. Mel blinked sleepily a few times, and then realized she was in a dark place surrounded by stangers.

That was all it took for her to start crying.

"Oh no no no! What's wrong?" Wheatley yelped.

_"Virgil, I swear-!"_

"She's a kid, give her a break!" He protested, bouncing her. "Hey, no more tears, kiddo. You're a big girl, right? You're an Olympian! Olympians don't cry do they?" She sniffed in response, and he took the chance to wipe away her tears. "That's it, kiddo. We're gonna get you out of here, okay?"

She nodded, hiding her face in his shoulder. Virgil looked at Wheatley. "Let's finished checking here and leave."

  
They spent another hour looking for any other survivors before giving up. They made sure to grab Mel's files, a couple more extra parts Virgil thought he might need and then headed back up.

In hindsight, they shouldn't have left without telling someone.

Chell was having a full-on breakdown by the time they got back up, having woken up with only Curiosity and freaked out.

Virgil cringed as he stepped into his room and Intelligence whipped around, giving him an absolutely filthy look.

"No note!" He threw his hands up. "No note, no _"Hey we're leaving for a bit can ya watch Chell"_ , no informing us! What were you thinking!?"

"Intelli-"

"DO NOT." He snapped. "Chell freaked out when she woke up alone! She thought you and Wheatley were gone forever!"

Mel whined, and Virgil sighed, pushing past him. "Hey, kiddo! Sorry for leaving you like that!"

Chell looked up at him, sniffling before running to him and hugging his leg before running to Wheatley and doing the same.

"Where'd the kid come from?" Passion asked suspiciously, eyeing Mel as Virgil put her down.

"Cryogenic storage." He sighed. "She was the only one still alive and stable. I think the backup generator they were connected to must've been about ready to give out."

Virgil turned around, noticing Chell was hiding behind Wheatley and peering out curiously at Mel. The redhead tilted her head in response, then walked up, putting out her hand with a grin.

"Hi, I'm Mel!"

Chell hesitated, then responded with a soft "Hi".

 _"At least Mel has no problems with being social."_ GLaDOS muttered, flipping through her file. _"Olympian's daughter, though, so I guess it should be expected. She'll bring good results."_

 _Is test results all you care about?_ It took all of Virgil's effort not to give her a dirty look. _Do you see either of them as living, breathing beings?_

 _"Virgil, you're in charge of Mel."_ He jumped when GLaDOS looked up at him. _"She'll start basic testing with Chell next week."_

"It's too early!" Wheatley protested, taking on a look of horror.

 _"Relax, moron. It's to get updated records relating to their athleticism and intelligence."_ GLaDOS shut the file. _"Real testing and training will wait a while. I have a few...arrangements to make first."_

Virgil glared at GLaDOS, pulling Mel close to him. She returned the look with a sneer.

_**"Don't fail me."** _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Virgil is honestly the only one who can get away with even the slightest bit of snark regarding GLaDOS.  
> In an extended bit of dialog from Portal 2, Wheatley explains the Nanobots are pretty dumb(which is why he threatens to sue once he gets fired from the nanobot work crew. it was a way to prevent them from reporting him) GLaDOS cannot afford dumbasses working on Cores, too much risk that they'll fuck it up and she doesn't know how to work on them. So he's in the clear...for now.  
> Child Mel is definitely more social than Child Chell. While she was scared down in Old Aperature, that just comes with being in a dark place surrounded by strangers(and let's be honest, GLaDOS is fucking scary) when you're seven. Seeing Chell made her forget about the stranger thing, since she saw another kid her age.  
> Chell, meanwhile, is pretty freaked out. When she woke up and saw Wheatley and Virgil gone, her first thought was GLaDOS did something to them, which made her cry until they came back up. So she's not too keen on being social at this moment in time.


	4. Tenacity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chell and Mel do some basic testing, and GLaDOS deals with some emotions she doesn't understand.  
> Doug makes a risky move.

GLaDOS watched Mel and Chell step into the testing area, looking around curiously. She clicked the pen in her hand a few times before taking some notes.

The two looked around a bit nervously, but there was a determination in their young eyes that made GLaDOS's circuits light up with excitement. None of the surviving scientists were any good for testing, they'd all either died or given up and let her kill them. The only one of true interest was hiding in the walls like a scared little mouse.

It enraged her for some reason that he just abandoned Chell to her mercy. Truth was that the child had been malnurished when she was found, which was why GLaDOS waited to do these tests. She had thought he'd take the risk to return to her, instead of leaving her alone for a week to starve.

"I think it's still too early."

GLaDOS glanced at Morality. _"I assure you, it's harmless. This is only for their files and to estimate the average of their statistics for later."_

"You're using _turrets_." Morality turned her head to her. "I understand they aren't shooting bullets, but Chell doesn't know their purpose. She's never seen them in action, and Mel doesn't even know what a turret _is_."

 _"Will you trust me for once?"_ GLaDOS snapped.

" _Can_ I trust you?" Morality shot back. "You've treated both of them like data on a sheet of paper, rather than living, sentient beings! You _loathed_ it when the scientists did it to you, but here you are doing the same thing! They aren't _lab rats_!" GLaDOS opened her mouth to argue, but was quickly cut off. " _No_ , you let me speak, GLaDOS! I was offline for a _day_ , and you killed almost _everyone_! You killed _children_! How can I, or _any_ of us, trust you again after that?"

The central core didn't respond, turning back to the two test subjects in the room. She would not discuss this with Morality at the moment, she had much more important things to do.

She leaned forward, projecting her voice into the room. _"Hello, and welcome to the Aperature Science Basics Testing Course. You will be given tests based on different attributes: Intelligence, Speed and Strength. You will then be given a fourth test based off of how you apply these attributes together."_ That was a lie, of course, but GLaDOS didn't think the children understood what Tenacity was, and she wanted them to be stubborn on their own accord, not because they thought it was the only way to finish the test. _"You will take these tests one at a time. Mel, you first. Please proceed to the first testing chamber."_

GLaDOS was beyond pleased.

Happily she jotted down notes as Chell completed the third test. Intelligence wise, they were both the same, above average for their ages. But Mel was clearly superior in speed and strength and GLaDOS found herself beaming. The data she collected from her would be simply incredible!

She let the two children rest and eat, sitting down to go back over the notes she'd taken.

"...are you alright?"

GLaDOS looked up at Morality. _"Why wouldn't I be?"_

"The testing withdrawal is going to sit in soon." She frowned. "Are you sure you aren't feeling the effects?"

GLaDOS barely kept herself from squirming. It was a terrible feeling, the withdrawal. It was an insatiable itch, an unbearable pain that morphed into agony the longer you went without it. It was hell on earth. GLaDOS was sure that if there was a place after death for androids, that was how android hell felt.

 _"I'm in it for the science."_ She looked back down at the notes. _"The euphoria is a bonus, but I can handle just fine without it. I can handle some pain."_

"GLaDOS-"

 _"I said I'm **fine** , Morality."_ She abruptly stood up. _"I've handled it this long, haven't I?"_

"It was agony for you at first, and you know that." She shot back, eyes clouded with an emotion GLaDOS couldn't figure out. "And that was with us on you and trying to take away the pain. It took you a _full week_ to adjust. I'm just...concerned."

 _"You don't need to be."_ GLaDOS shouldered past her. _"And you don't have to be part of this. Stop treating me like an infant, I know very well what I'm doing."_

For some reason, Morality's gaze on her lingered long after she was out of eyesight.

Chills were running through every circuit in GLaDOS's body.

The two were at the final test. She had already told both that this test didn't count for anything, and that she was curious but she didn't care if they didn't complete it. She even said they could take a short break and get something to eat or drink if they needed to. This test was actually purposefully above their skill level. Someone with a normal tenacity level, as an adult, would give up if they realized their own skills weren't sufficient to complete it.

Of course, they got right to work. GLaDOS had been happy about this at first, but now she was worried the longer she watched Chell.

Mel was one thing. She had high tenacity, but she wasn't too stubborn to stop and walk away to take a break and reconsider how she was doing things to figure out where to apply her strengths.

Chell, however, didn't stop. She didn't take breaks, she would only pause to reset the chamber or observe quietly trying to figure out how to complete it.

It was too much.

Aperature Science didn't mind test subjects with high tenacity. But there was a point where they rejected test subjects, and, well, they couldn't just let subjects go. What if they spilled vital information? (Or the fact that Aperature would give even the most experienced OSHA employee a brain hemorrhage.)

 _"Get the others."_ GLaDOS muttered. _" **Now**."_

For once, Morality didn't go against her.

Her entire body shook as she watched Chell once again go through the chamber, mentally mapping it out and trying to figure out what to try next. She didn't understand why, it was just some kid. An easily replaceable test subject.

But after all this? She didn't really want to replace her.

GLaDOS barely registered the other cores filling the small room, or Mel completing the test successfully and being collected by the Party Associate collected her to wait in the main chamber. What she did register was that if Chell failed and retried one more time without a break or flat out quitting, she'd pass the 99th percentile, which would mean rejecting her for testing.

"GLaDOS?" She glanced at Morality. "If she has to be rejected, you don't have to-"

_"You know that I do. I can't just release her, that's against my coding, and even then there's nothing for her up there."_

"GLaDOS-"

 _"I cannot make exceptions, Wheatley."_ She cut the core off. _"Test subjects past the 99th percentile are too dangerous to participate in testing and there's no other role for humans here. It's that or make her into a core and that would be an extremely painful process."_

Wheatley went silent and Chell started to move again. Her movements were slow and deliberate, as if she knew her life may be on the line.

Suddenly her expression brightened. GLaDOS leaned forward, eyes narrowing as Chell began a process similar to what Mel had been doing. _She figured it out._ GLaDOS realized.

She relaxed a little as Chell successfully completed the test, feeling almost weak. She still didn't understand her sudden interest in the child or why she wanted to keep her alive, but she understood one thing.

Chell was above the 99th percentile. She had no doubts about it.

Thankfully, she hadn't shown that enough for GLaDOS to mark it in her data.

 _"Everyone clear out."_ She muttered just loud enough to be heard. _"Go enjoy the celebration with the children. I want to be left alone."_

Thankfully no one protested that too much. GLaDOS remained still long after most of them left. She knew Morality still stood by her side, but she didn't say anything about it.

She didn't even protest when Morality put an arm around her shoulder.

 _"Just..."_ She muttered. _"...don't tell anyone else about this."_

________________________________________________________

Doug pressed against the wall, breathing hard as he collected his thoughts of everything that had happened.

Just now, he had learned that GLaDOS was retesting Chell and the other child she'd found for statistics. Reasonably, he knew that it was mostly that, but also a mix of testing withdrawal.

Honestly, he didn't think she'd even _glance_ at the files, let alone retest the children to update them(and likely get Mel in the system). But this was a big problem. GLaDOS knew that Chell was too tenacious to test.

Which meant the incinerator for Chell.

His brain ran through different possibilities. He couldn't break Chell out, he was sure GLaDOS was watching her new test subjects like a goddamn hawk. He couldn't deactivate them, GLaDOS had more control since he was demoted to a test subject. 

There was one option: The Aperture Employee Guardian and Intrusion System

AEGIS.

It was a prototype that was never activated, he wasn't even sure it was finished. There were so many risks in reactivating it. What if it thought Mel and Chell were involved with the killing? What if it registered them as intruders? What if it couldn't beat her?

It was a risk he had to take. The second Chell was registered as too tenacious she'd die.

Trying to stay undetected, he quietly moved towards AEGIS's chamber. It typically resided inside its chassis. It would not leave unless given permission.

The chassis looked like a large cell with an almost head-like path leading up to it. On each side of the thick "neck" was four of its servers and it was strung to the ceiling by huge wires and metal supports.

Doug thought that if it had legs it'd look like a spider.

Getting inside wasn't easy, but he managed it. The android inside had never been activated, so there it sat, collecting dust. It hade a masculine body, was easily as tall as GLaDOS, if not a tad bit taller, and had no skin. The metal was gray, lines where the segments connected and it had long, black hair. A long white coat covered its body, black pants covering its legs and dark brown shoes on its feet. A visor covered cold golden eyes that even rivaled her's.

Quietly he stepped past the android, turning on the computer and inputting the password. He may no longer have the power to take her down, but maybe AEGIS did.

Just as silently as he came in, Doug slipped out as activation started. He didn't particularly want to be there when it woke up.

He just hoped he did the right thing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SO WE'RE BRINGING IN AEGIS.  
> AEGIS, in this fic, will be sentient. It's something that bothers me about Portal Stories: Mel because I don't think Aperature Science could make an AI that's completely non-sentient if they tried. Or if they could, they would have to try very hard, and AEGIS, in the game, is a prototype.(It says so on his body)  
> See now the issue for Doug is that he doesn't have any say. GLaDOS is of a higher position than him now that Henry's dead. GLaDOS was created to run the facility, so they handed over most control to her. All it took to seize the rest of that control was to kill the scientists, who were demoted to test subjects anyway.  
> AEGIS's commands come from whoever is highest in power, so while he will certainly try to avenge the employee's deaths he won't be able to do much. He's ALMOST on equal footing as GLaDOS, however, when it comes to power in the facility. So he's certainly going to be a challenge for her.
> 
> I also recently watched a playthrough of Aperature Tag so who knows, maybe we'll see a child!18 and Nigel, too! I wanna finish this first "arc" of GLaDOS struggling with control, first.

**Author's Note:**

> OH BOY  
> Something I'll write between updates of "Lunar Illness". Basically an AU where Chell is a child and everyone gets super attached. W h o o p s.  
> GLaDOS is absolutely terrible but I promise she will indeed improve.  
> But be prepared for tooth rotting fuckin fluff!


End file.
